Tears Of A Tiger Book Reviev

Book Review: Tears of a Tiger author: Sharon M. Drapor

By, Noemi Delgado

           As Monty was drawing a picture for school, he looked up to his big brother Andy and asked if tigers cry. Andy was tough like a tiger and Monty saw him as a role model. But now Andy cried a lot and didn’t feel he deserved to be looked up to. Andy told his little brother it was okay to draw tears on his tiger.
           Andy Jackson was a 17-year-old basketball star on the Hazelwood High Tigers. He was a loving brother and boyfriend with decent grades and a big chance for a college scholarship.  His life was filled with basketball, girls and parties. He was one of the most popular kids at school. Until a tragic accident unraveled his happiness into, depression and guilt.  After a long basketball game Andy and his buddies had a few drinks before Andy got in the drivers seat. Andy lost control and they got into a horrible accident.  He watched as his best friend Robert Washington, who was stuck in the car, burn to death.
           This accident led into the story of a teenage boy dealing with extreme guilt, on top of all the problems any high school student would go through. As an African American, he also dealt with discrimination and expectations from his father to fit in with a white society. This book is interesting because it tells the story from many different perspectives; such as Andy’s, his friend’s, his teacher’s, his brother’s, his parent’s and his psychologist’s. These character’s feelings are expressed in many different forms. For example the author uses diary entries, English essays, letters and dialogues to tell this story. The unique writing style of Sharon M. Drapor, gives the readers the opportunity to mold their opinion about different events, according to the feelings and experiences of various characters. It also lets you see how Andy’s deterioration affects the people around him, especially the ones who loved him the most.
           Andy became obsessed by his guilt. He tried to act happy, but around his girlfriend Keisha he opened up and let his depression take over. Their relationship grew weaker as Andy grew sadder.  Throughout the book you see Andy  becomes more and more isolated, which causes him to care less not only about others, but about himself.
           The book captivates your feelings and lets you understand the pain that every character goes through. I recommend this book because, it allows you to enter the world of Andy Jackson and his tragic experiences. This story is mostly told in dialogue, so it is not the most beautifully written book. But it’s deep emotional pull makes it worth the read.